For those of us wanting a quick refresher course on Deadpool before his new series begins in September, Marvel has set up the Deadpool Saga online, a quick comic designed to explore Deadpool’s history in the Marvel Universe. Take a look if you are interested.
The San Francisco Treat
Subscriptions be praised! Somehow, by “accident” I’m sure, the much hyped X-Men milestone comic was released two days before its typical Wednesday release date. This issue was written by Ed Brubaker (The Death of Captain America) and Matt Fraction (Punisher War Journal) and focuses on the X-Men now that there are only 198 mutants left in the world and forced to flee to San Fransisco as it has denied the Super Human Registration Act.
This issue did a great job of setting up the future of the X-Men and mutants, and hopefully those humans now dealing with losing their mutant heritage and powers. Magneto is hooked up with the High Evolutionary and with two those two together, who knows what could become of the X-Men. Personally, I want the mutants to come back through some experiment of the High Evolutionary, but I feel confident now that there are enough new items to explore to keep the different X-titles fresh for awhile while Marvel decides what to do.
X-Men is about surviving in spite of hatred and bigotry, the minority being exploited and eradicated by ignorance. It might seem like with mutants, who symbolically stood for African-Americans and most recently homosexuals, could not stand for the same things there are only 200 mutants around, but now there is potential to look at what happens when the ignorant are close to winning, what would happen if the little guy were about to be overwhelmed. The best part is, we’re going to see that story told with giant robots and crazy battles with a cast of colorful characters.
Plus I’m also looking forward to learning more about Pixie’s involvement in the team.
courtesy Warner Bros.
Those of you who went to see The Dark Knight this weekend saw the trailer for the highly-anticipated movie adaptation to Alan Moore’s Watchmen, the first comic book ever collected in trade paperback.
The trailer looks awesome, and I’m looking forward to this movie, even though Alan Moore doesn’t approve. The comic is about an allegorical set of super heroes now in retirement. It’s the 1980s and the height of the Cold War. The comic is a tome, 12 issues, but well worth the read. The storyline is brilliant, but filled with all sorts of homage and allusions to comics. In fact, the world of Watchmen is a reflection of DC’s history, and acts as a massive love letter to comics fans. The movie will most likely remove a lot of these nuances to make the film more appealing to a wider audience.
All in all, this will most likely be a box office hit. Comic fans have known about Watchmen for years, and hopefully hype up to the film’s release will send people to bookstores to see what it’s about.
It may seem a bit hasty to do a retrospective on a series still being released, but the third trade paperback of the series Punisher War Journal has just been published and the regular writer is soon to leave the comic, so I figure there is enough material to look at to make a fair assessment. I also think it’s good to examine the series as the comic media is goo goo for writer Matt Fraction. Is their undying praise justified?
In some way, it is. The idea of the Punisher, the bad ass human who fights crime with large guns and explosives, began in a super hero comic. But, as time progressed and Marvel became more “realistic”, Punisher fought human foes, and costumed vigilantes appeared less and less. Matt Fraction’s Punisher War Journal puts Frank Castle straight into the heart of the Marvel Universe in all its absurd glory.
From becoming the new Captain America to shooting the Rhino, the Punisher has gotten back to his roots as a vigilante out to fight vigilantes. Couple this nostalgic take on Punisher with the beautiful art of Ariel Olivetti that could give Alex Ross a run for his money and this is a great, fun series. There’s action, crossovers, humor, and character development - all the thing Marvel fans read comics for. Read the rest of this entry »
The following press release has shown up online. Released from BOOM! Studios, it leaves a lot to the imagination. Hopefully all the removed information will be revealed at San Diego Comic Con?
BOOM! Studios is putting out a four part miniseries featuring writer Gary Phillips sharing his background and knowledge of Los Angeles, the foundation of his new series High Rollers.
This series has been an unexpected hit for BOOM!, and Phillips continues his comic writing career, which focuses on crime and the underworld. This is a good bonus for the many fans of this book, and also a good look at a writer’s process. Check the video out below, and look for future installments on YouTube.
There are inherent problems with super heroes that destroy reader accessibility. DC heroes are plagued with these sort of problems.
courtesy DC
Take Superman - while a child’s hero, is not as accessible as he could be. What I mean is super hero comics are escapist fantasies - the reader likes to get lost in these stories and for kids, imagine what it would be like if they were that hero. But I can never be Superman. He’s an alien. I can’t be Batman - I mean, I could if I was the world’s greatest athlete, a millionaire, have gadgets and an IQ over 300. Wonder Woman is a Greek Myth.
But Captain Marvel is a better sort of hero. When kid Billy Batson says the word SHAZAM he becomes Captain Marvel, the super strong and fast adult hero that can throw down with the likes of Superman. Any child can be Captain Marvel. You don’t need scientific knowledge or a trust fund to become him. It’s conceivable that walking down the street we could be this hero. Read the rest of this entry »
Not bad. It was really hard to gauge what to expect from this movie based on the trailer due to many factors - how the success of Pan’s Labyrinth would influence the film, what comics would they adapt, etc. As far as that goes, Hellboy 2 was it’s own unique thing, apart from the comics and Guillermo del Toro’s other works.
The biggest pull for the movie was it’s bigger budget. There were more monsters, including a giant elemental and dozens of background creatures, making the movie seem very Men in Black-esque. This was a great aspect of the movie, that there was just a lot of cool, bizarre throw away monsters and magical creatures that added depth to the fantasy underworld.
There were a few characterization driven lulls in the film, but once the action started back up, these doldrums are forgiven. The sequel was a great summer movie, playing off the legacy of the comics, del Toro’s artistic style, and the first film, throwing in the types of gimmicks you’d expect from a Hollywood sequel.
If the movie breaks even, we may expect a third movie on the horizon, and I think with all the hype and the fact that this film is enjoyable and filled with imagination, a growing Hellboy fan base is assured. In the summer of great super hero movies - this is a must see, even if it’s just to see something different.
One of the big criticisms for this crime thriller set in L.A. I saw in another review was that:
As one commentator pointed out “I actually kinda liked how the atmosphere wasn’t the same stereotypical hoods always on tv and video games”, which got me thinking about crime and how we perceive it. Read the rest of this entry »
Marvel Goes Bananas
People thought it was a joke. After the success of Marvel Zombies, Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada keep insisting that the next alternate reality of Marvel heroes would be of a simian variety. Still, people scoffed. Quesada sure showed them.
Set for release September 3rd, Marvel Apes #1 will hit shelves with a slew of other Marvel titles featuring “Monkey Variants.” This follows the success of Arthur Suydam’s zombie covers which replicated famous Marvel covers.
Good idea? Shameless gimmick? Brilliant marketing? Seeing as no real plot details have been released, the only way to see how this series pans out will be to wait until September.
My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.